Iowa State Patrol Troopers Seth Bean, left, along with Mark Anderson help map the crime scene, Wednesday afternoon, Dec. 4, 2019, at the scene of a robbery and homicide at the Security State Bank in Lu Verne, Iowa. (Hans Madsen/The Messenger via AP)

LU VERNE — A woman was fatally shot Wednesday during a bank robbery in a small northern Iowa town and a suspect is in custody, investigators said.

Mitch Mortvedt of the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation said the suspect was detained hours after the robbery and shooting at the Security State Bank, the only bank in Lu Verne, a town of about 250 people.

Mortvedt said a female employee was “just walking into the bank” when she was shot Wednesday morning.

The Kossuth County Sheriff’s Office identified the woman as Jessica Weishaar, 43, of Algona. She was found dead on the sidewalk in front of the bank.

The statement said investigators used video surveillance and eyewitnesses to identify a suspect and vehicle. They then detained a suspect following a traffic stop on Interstate 35.

Mortvedt said the vehicle and its occupant matched the description of the alleged bank robber, but that the person was detained for questioning without incident. He said investigators were “trying to put the pieces together” but that the public is no longer in danger.